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36 Hours in Vientiane, Laos

The Patuxai arch, where visitors climb five flights for a panoramic view of the city.Credit
David Hagerman for The New York Times

NESTLED in a curve of the Mekong River, Vientiane, Laos, is a place where monks in orange robes outnumber tourists, and French colonial roofs and gilded temples form the skyline. Along the dusty streets of the capital of Laos, you’re more likely to spot a polished Volkswagen bug puttering along than a traffic jam. And in the town center, butterflies and birds flutter among the frangipanis. But with the recent introduction of more international flights, several ambitious infrastructural and commercial projects, and an increasingly cosmopolitan restaurant and cafe scene, Vientiane is quickly changing. Now is the time to explore the city’s small-town charms before it joins the modern world.

Friday

5 p.m.1. BREW AND VIEW

Come dusk, you’ll find Vientiane’s residents flocking to the new Chao Anouvong Park, a 35-acre expanse of grass and concrete that lines the Mekong River. You can join those engaged in brisk walks and tai chi, or follow the mellower crowd: harem-pants-wearing, jewelry-laden backpackers mesmerized by the sunset and cheap cans of the delicious national brew, Beerlao, that are served at outdoor stalls. For a classier tipple, the Spirit House (09/093 Fa Ngum Road; 856-21-243-795; thespirithouselaos.com) mixes julep-strained gin martinis — stirred and made with a julep strainer — and pomelo Collinses (from 30,000 Lao kip, or $3.88 at 7,724 kip to the dollar) in a breezy Buddhism-inspired house with Mekong River views.

7:30 p.m.2. FEEL-GOOD FOOD

Not only are the modern renditions of Laos cuisine at Makphet (Behind Wat Ong Teu; 856-21-260-587; friends-international.org) addictive, but proceeds at the vocational training restaurant, run by Friends-International, a nongovernmental organization, support programs for disadvantaged youth. In a cheerful brick-and-wood space with paintings by students hanging on the walls, tourists and development workers share dishes like Ancient Fish (75,000 kip), deep-fried local river fish topped with lemon grass, tamarind and shredded green mango; and a banana flower salad (50,000 kip) accompanied by garlicky grilled pork and sesame seeds. Don’t skip the sesame and peanut-encrusted dumplings with hibiscus syrup (35,000 kip) for dessert.

9:30 p.m.3. TEN-PIN PARTY

Vientiane might appear to be snoozing after dinner, but things are in full swing at the Lao Bowling Center (Khounboulom Road; 856-21-218-661; 12,000 kip per game), which stays open till the wee hours on weekends. The lanes are warped, the balls dented and the pinsetters have a mind of their own, but the atmosphere can’t be beat. Enthusiastic locals applaud when any pins are knocked over, no matter if they tumble across the foul line during the approach. The young women in silk sinh, or wrapped sarongs, are particularly impressive while downing cans of Beerlao and outplaying their boyfriends.

Spend the morning admiring Laos’s wealth of handmade products. An essential first stop is American Carol Cassidy’s Lao Textiles (84-86 Nokeokoummane Street; 856-21-212-123; laotextiles.com) which stocks gorgeous brocade and ikat pieces. Wander the grounds and watch the team of 50 weavers work their magic. T’Shop Laï Gallery (Vat Inpeng Street; 856-21-223-178; laococo.com/tshoplai.htm), a French-run, retro-apothecary-meets-home-décor shop, is a haven for local goods, with trays made of flecked, dark coconut palm wood and massage oils, soaps, and shampoos crafted from Kaffir lime and white tea. At fair-trade Camacrafts (Nokeokoummane Street, 856-21-241-217; camacrafts.org), you’ll find brightly embroidered travel wallets and batiked satchels and place mats made by the ethnic Hmong people.

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Massage mats at Papaya Spa, across from Wat Xieng Veh.Credit
David Hagerman for The New York Times

12:30 p.m.5. ZEN APPEAL

Vientiane’s culinary scene is surprisingly international, with options that include Italian, Indian, Tex-Mex and Korean. There are also several Japanese spots, the best of which is homey YuLaLa Cafe (Hengboun Street; 856-20-5510-4050), run by a young couple from Kyoto, Hisaya and Aya Okada, who play Bach and Bob Dylan while cooking Japanese-inspired healthy treats. Diners sit on floor cushions sampling dishes like pork cutlets topped with sautéed shiitake and enoki mushrooms (48,000 kip) and a minced white radish and green-onion-and-soy-marinated chicken salad (42,000 kip).

2 p.m.6. A DIFFICULT LEGACY

Between 1964 and 1973, the United States dropped over two million tons of ordnance over Laos, making it the most heavily bombed country per capita in history. About a third of the bombs failed to detonate and continue to add to the more than 50,000 casualties that have occurred in the last 50 years. Learn about efforts to provide victims with medical assistance at the new visitor center run by local Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise, or COPE, where documentaries, art installations and interactive exhibits tell the troubling story of unexploded ordnance in Laos (Khouvieng Road; 856-21-218-427; copelaos.org).

Take advantage of Vientiane’s many chilled-out cafes, which rely on the coffee beans grown in Laos’s highlands. Pair a fair-trade, organic blend with a decadent pastry at the expat- and art-filled Joma Bakery Café (Setthathirat Street; 856-21-254-333; joma.biz). At Le Banneton (Nokeokoummane Road; 856-21-217-321), lattes and cappuccinos brewed from organic robusta beans are served with croissants in a French colonial-themed setting, while Zen-like Little House (Manthatourat Road; 856-20-5540-6036) roasts its own beans and sells pretty textiles.

5:30 p.m.8. ROUGH AND READY

Tucked away in a residential area behind the Hotel Beau Rivage Mekong, Papaya Spa (west of town, across from Wat Xieng Veh; 856-20-216-550; papayaspa.com) is the capital’s best spot for a rejuvenating rubdown, Lao-style. In treatment rooms scattered around a garden filled with birds of paradise, frangipani and papaya trees, masseuses deliver an intense blend of stretching and pressure point therapy (140,000 kip, one hour).

8 p.m.9. FRENCH FANFARE

The French left more than a half-century ago, but their legacy remains in the city’s stellar cuisine. An intriguing newcomer is the casual chic bistro L’Adresse de Tinay (behind Wat Ong Teu; 856-20-5691-3434), run by a Lao-French couple Tinay and Delphine Inthavong, where the seasonal menu might include goat’s cheese rolls with sun-dried tomatoes and cherry confiture (71,000 kip) or Grandma Lydie’s Special, duck confit served over a white bean and sausage cassoulet (130,000 kip). In a cozy, candlelit dining room at Le Silapa (17 Sihom Road; 856-21-219-689) a French-Canadian chef creates decadent dishes like terrine of foie gras with Laphroaig-perfumed minced mushrooms (170,000 kip) and Australian lamb paired with goat’s cheese and rosemary (160,000 kip).

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Tatami-style seating at YuLaLa Cafe.Credit
David Hagerman for The New York Times

10 p.m.10. CREATIVE DRINKING

At Jazzy Brick (Setthathirat Street; 856-20-771-1138), popular among the city’s elite, the bar has an Old World feel with Moulin Rouge posters, leather and rattan bar stools, jazz and big-band tunes playing in the background, and a selection of cocktails (from 40,000 kip) and French digestifs (from 65,000 kip). Loft Lounge Bar (26 Khounboulom Road; 856-21-242-991) and its cozy couches are the city’s best spot to share a bottle of French wine with a D.J. spinning ambient tunes.

Sunday

8:30 a.m.11. CRUISE, CRUISE, CRUISE

Explore Vientiane’s quiet lanes by bicycle, which can be rented around town for about $5 a day. Start by heading southeast on Setthathirat Street, with its regal colonial villas, before turning left on Lanexang Avenue, which leads to Patuxai arch, Vientiane’s somewhat shoddy version of the Arc de Triomphe. Climb the five flights to the top floor for a panoramic view of the city. Continue about two miles northeast on 23 Singha Road to Pha That Luang, a giant stupa lined in gold. Walk around it three times to stay in Buddha’s good graces, before looping back to tranquil, crumbling 190-year-old Wat Sisaket (corner of Lanexang and Setthathirat), one of the few temples to survive the Siamese razing of the city in 1828.

11:30 a.m.12. TROPICAL BRUNCH

On a quiet lane, Kung’s Café Lao (Phiawat Village, across from the Ministry of Health; 856-21-219-101) is an iconic Vientiane experience. It’s hard to know what to love most about the place — the potent Lao coffee, best enjoyed with condensed milk and ice (7,000 kip); the sticky rice pancakes topped with fresh mango (12,000 kip); the Muzak-, plant- and basket-filled courtyard; or the family who runs the place and its eloquent patriarch, 70-year-old J. B., and his fantastic tales about the changing face of Vientiane through the decades.

Family-run Hôtel Khamvongsa (Khun Bu Lom Road; 856-21-223-257; hotelkhamvongsa.com), with 26 atmospheric rooms, is a Vientiane gem. The antiques-filled sunny breakfast area is a lovely spot to begin the day. Starting at $35, rooms, with four-poster beds, are a steal.

A version of this article appears in print on March 25, 2012, on page TR12 of the New York edition with the headline: 36 Hours: Vientiane, Laos. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe